New frogs and spiders found in ‘Lost World’ wilderness
Dozens of new species including a tiny chirping frog, a bright green tree frog with enormous eyes, a striped gecko and more than 50 types of spider have been discovered in the remote mountain forests have Papua New Guinea.
The extraordinary scientific bounty was the result of a field trip to the Pacific island involving local scientists and community members as well as experts from Conservation International and two North American universities, the University of British Columbia (UBC) and Montclair State University.
More than 600 species of creature were catalogued during the month-long “Lost World”-style expedition.
“If you’re finding things that are that big and that spectacular that are new, that’s really an indication that there’s a lot out there that we don’t know about,” said Steve Richards, the leader of the expedition, according to a story in the Daily Telegraph.
“It never ceases to amaze me, the spectacular things that are turning up from that island.”
Several more trips to explore Papua New Guinea’s Kaijende highlands and Hewa wilderness regions are planned to build on the work. Conservation International says the research will help protect the pristine environment for local clan communities who rely on the forests as sources of food and clean water.
Spider experts are particularly excited about the discovery of four new species of jumping spider, which can jump inches off the ground using blood pressure in their legs.
“They are strikingly distinctive evolutionary lineages that had been unknown before, with a group that is already very distinctive on the evolutionary tree of jumping spiders,” said Wayne Maddison of the University of British Columbia.
“Their key position on the evolutionary tree will help us understand how this unique group of jumping spiders has evolved.”
The tree frog, called Nyctimystes, is a large green amphibian with black eyes which was discovered near a clear running mountain river. The frog’s tadpoles have huge sucker-like mouths that they use to attach to slippery rocks so they are not swept away.
Picures of another new amphibian, the Litoria, showed the tiny frog sitting on a leaf, with its throat puffed out impressively.